A portable handheld device includes, for example, cell phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), smartphone, e-readers, or tablet computers to name a few. Portable handheld devices are compact, lightweight, easily transportable, and offer a variety of features and applications, including for example, Internet web browsing, e-mail, media streaming, video conferencing, video recording, image capture, global positioning system (GPS) navigation, video gaming, and document review.
Most portable handheld devices have optional accessories to provide additional functionality. Accessories include, for example, protective covers, carrying cases, sleeves, belt clips, holsters, docks and kickstands. Protective covers, carrying cases, and sleeves protect portable handheld devices. Belt clips are typically spring-loaded clips that facilitate fastening of the portable handheld device onto a pocket or belt so that the device can be conveniently carried by a user. Holsters include an integrated combination of a belt clip with a carrying case. Docks are appliances to which a portable handheld devices are connected. Docks may be used to charge the portable handheld device, listen to music, or to easily view the device from a dashboard or windshield. Kickstands support portable handheld devices in either a portrait or landscape mode in a stabilized and secure manner without the use of hands (“hands-free”).
Certain features of portable handheld devices such as video recording and image capture utilize a camera for capturing still photographs or recording, reproducing, or broadcasting moving or dynamic visual images including video conferencing.
One problem with the capture of still photographs or the recording of dynamic images is known as the “shake effect”, which is caused by even the slightest wavering hand. As a result, the capture of a still photograph results in poor clarity of the image regardless of the number of camera megapixels. With video recording, the shake effect causes jitter in the dynamic images.
There are limited accessories available for handheld portable devices that allow a user to use certain features and applications of the device in a stabilized and secure hands-free manner such as to minimize or eliminate shake effect.
Another problem is that the use of portable handheld devices is associated with high head and neck flexion postures as compared with desktop computing devices. Head and neck flexion postures are affected by where the device is positioned during use such as on a table or the user's lap. High head and neck flexion postures are sometimes referred to as “text neck”. Specifically, text neck is a repetitive stress injury, involving the head, neck and shoulders resulting from excessive strain from looking at a portable handheld device in either a forward or downward position. Text neck is known to cause fatigue, headaches, neck pain, back pain, shoulder and arm pain, breathing compromise, and much more.
Certain studies suggest that head and neck posture can be improved through accessories designed to allow for optimal viewing angles while facilitating more neutral postures thereby increasing the comfort of the user. Currently available accessories fail to elevate portable handheld devices from a table or user's lap to an ergonomic eye level in order to reduce the effects of text neck.
What is needed is an apparatus that enables stabilized, hands-free functionality for portable handheld devices that can be used with existing products for portable handheld devices such as holsters and belt clips and additionally, an apparatus that is ergonomically designed to minimize neck pain and discomfort. The present invention satisfies these needs.